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Plume D'ella Plumeria
Joined: 10 Jan 2005
Location: The Lost Horizon
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 Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2005 11:00 pm Post subject: A Question for the GEPIK People - Are You Willing to Share? |
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I heard some murmurings today that the GEPIK heads are wanting to save money and are therefore mulling over the thought of having GEPIK teachers share accommodations next year. I am wondering how this could even be physically possible, as there is only one of us to a school. On the other hand, GEPIK does seem to be expanding and quite a few towns have a handful of teachers scattered throughout a variety of its schools.
I'm wondering if any others have heard of this fiendish proposition. What would your response be, if it came to pass? |
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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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| Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2005 11:17 pm Post subject: |
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I'm not in GEPIK and my contract says a 2 room but:
I did share an apartment for a few months early last yar. It was kind of ok as I had met the person before so it wasn't like I was moving in with a complete stranger. However on balance I'm a lot happier living by myself.
I thinkBeing able to have your own space is important ingredient to being able to function in Korea. I don't like the idea of being forced to share my digs with someone I've never met (and bear in mind that it's korea beware the freaky waygook!) and have to do so for a year of my life. Yeah ok we have roommates in the west but the point is that we choose to live with them. And if we don't like it then they or we can leave the situation.
Bad, bad idea IMHO. |
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JacktheCat
Joined: 08 May 2004
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| Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2005 11:21 pm Post subject: |
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| Why is it that at the same as the Korean government is trying to recruit more teachers into the public school system, they're also downgrading the incentives; ie less vacation time, worse accommodation, and more inane paperwork? |
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Grotto
Joined: 21 Mar 2004
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| Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2005 11:29 pm Post subject: |
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jackthecat wrote
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| Why is it that at the same as the Korean government is trying to recruit more teachers into the public school system, they're also downgrading the incentives; ie less vacation time, worse accommodation, and more inane paperwork? |
Because they are stupid? Or because we are?
Even the Korean teachers that I work with think the education system in Korea is horrendously incompetant. |
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Derrek
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Wed Mar 30, 2005 11:37 pm Post subject: |
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I think that if I was forced to stay, and told I might have to share, I would opt for money instead of accomodations really fast.
My contract states that I may be required to live with a roommate. I am in an offictell. If they decided to do that, I'd be gone in a heartbeat. I'd kindly give immediate notice. |
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Saxiif
Joined: 15 May 2003
Location: Seongnam
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| Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 3:59 am Post subject: |
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| JacktheCat wrote: |
| Why is it that at the same as the Korean government is trying to recruit more teachers into the public school system, they're also downgrading the incentives; ie less vacation time, worse accommodation, and more inane paperwork? |
Because the more teachers there are the more money they have to spend, and they don't like spending money. Of course this will just lead to the same recruiting embarrassment as with EPIK... |
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turtlepi1
Joined: 15 Jun 2004
Location: Abu Dhabi, UAE
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| Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 9:09 am Post subject: |
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| Derrek wrote: |
I think that if I was forced to stay, and told I might have to share, I would opt for money instead of accomodations really fast.
My contract states that I may be required to live with a roommate. I am in an offictell. If they decided to do that, I'd be gone in a heartbeat. I'd kindly give immediate notice. |
so hypothetically speaking if you were in month 8 of a contract and were willing to stay until month 10 would you give them notice now? GEPIK
If you leave in month 10 you are losing about $8000 including july's pay.
I don't imagine they would be too flexible in the terms of the contract. |
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Derrek
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 3:23 pm Post subject: |
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| turtlepi1 wrote: |
| Derrek wrote: |
I think that if I was forced to stay, and told I might have to share, I would opt for money instead of accomodations really fast.
My contract states that I may be required to live with a roommate. I am in an offictell. If they decided to do that, I'd be gone in a heartbeat. I'd kindly give immediate notice. |
so hypothetically speaking if you were in month 8 of a contract and were willing to stay until month 10 would you give them notice now? GEPIK
If you leave in month 10 you are losing about $8000 including july's pay.
I don't imagine they would be too flexible in the terms of the contract. |
I'm not at all worried for these reasons:
1. my place is an offictell, and too small for 2 people.
2. they have a contract with this current place, and the money is all handled through Kyonngi somehow, so it'd be a pain for them to pull a switch part way through (have to find a rentor, etc.)
3. my school is not searching for another teacher. We already have 2 foreigners. We had 3 last year, but they went to 2. We are a private school, and have more chance to do what we want. We aren't as "locked' into the Public school rules. This has positives and negatives.
My job isn't GEPIK anyway, technically. They just try to follow those rules.
Basically, what I'm saying is that if they tried anything like this, they'd do it at the beginning of a new contract. Highly improbably that they'd do it part-way through to someone in a place for one person. CMG, however.... I'd be nervous if I had a 2 bedroom.
Please explain how someone would be losing $8,000 if they left in month 8? Sure, you'd lose your bonus, but at month 8, it's not that much worth hanging around for, in my opinion. You're talking about another 4 months of work for that. You're counting the rest of your salary for the rest of those months. Should I count the last 4 months of pay in my job back home (if I had stayed) before coming to Korea as "a loss?" Kind of a skewed way to present a number, isn't it?
I don't consider my life tied to any Korean contract. I can go home and find another job. And I'd only have 4 months left on a contract here before I could return if it didn't work out.
Some hints on how to negotiate with these people. You don't negotiate by biting your fingernails and showing them you are worried about these things. They'll see it, and bend you over backwards and rape you at the first sign of weakness. You must be firm from the start, and make it known (by hints around the office) that you wouldn't accept such a change, and will respectfully leave them high-n-dry if they tried to pull something like that. You have to seem aloof, and fluid, as if you don't feel you are controlled. Here's the kicker, though -- you have to be a "good" teacher, an obvious hard worker, and be liked by the students.
Korean bosses are manipulative. It's their nature. You have to learn how to manipulate them to your advantage. One of the ways to do so is by hinting things to your co-workers. |
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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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| Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 3:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Derrek wrote: |
Basically, what I'm saying is that if they tried anything like this, they'd do it at the beginning of a new contract. Highly improbably that they'd do it part-way through to someone in a place for one person. CMG, however.... I'd be nervous if I had a 2 bedroom.
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Well that's one of things that I would fight with my school over. My contract states very clearly that I get a nonshared two bedroomed place.
I'm not nervous at the moment but gyeonggi do's claws are out at the moment. |
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Grotto
Joined: 21 Mar 2004
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| Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 3:58 pm Post subject: |
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if you gave notice in month 8 and left in month 10.
You would lose your severance pay.
Your ticket home.
One weeks holiday (7 business days or 1/3 of a month)
2.4(severance pay)+ticket home(1.5 in my case)+.8(holiday pay)=4.7mil
You dont lose the 2 months pay because you never worked them.
Still with only 2 months left thats a lot to throw away considering that in August you would only work until the 22'nd(the rest would be holidays)
Once you are within the last 4 months of the contract you sometimes find yourself putting up with alot of crap that you would not have put up with previously(at least in my last contract that was true).
But in response to the OP no I would not accept shared accomodations. I like my privacy, I like using the couch as a clothes hamper and I like walking around in my underwear. |
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Derrek
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Thu Mar 31, 2005 4:21 pm Post subject: |
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| Grotto wrote: |
if you gave notice in month 8 and left in month 10.
You would lose your severance pay.
Your ticket home.
One weeks holiday (7 business days or 1/3 of a month)
2.4(severance pay)+ticket home(1.5 in my case)+.8(holiday pay)=4.7mil
You dont lose the 2 months pay because you never worked them.
Still with only 2 months left thats a lot to throw away considering that in August you would only work until the 22'nd(the rest would be holidays)
Once you are within the last 4 months of the contract you sometimes find yourself putting up with alot of crap that you would not have put up with previously(at least in my last contract that was true).
But in response to the OP no I would not accept shared accomodations. I like my privacy, I like using the couch as a clothes hamper and I like walking around in my underwear. |
Wrong.
You're adding up a bunch of "would bes."
First, you're assuming I'd bother staying past my next payday, which I wouldn't. I'd be going home.
Holidays? You can't count holidays you wouldn't have if you left. Why do you keep count those as pay? Again, you're counting months you WOULD BE working. That's bad math. Get another job back home, and you'll be working. Or heck, work 2 PT jobs illegally here on an extension until you're ready to go back.
Severance pay is something you WOULD BE getting if you work a year. If I left in month 8, I would only have worked 8 months out of 12. That, in your case Grotto, is only a loss of a million if you left in month 8. Hanging around for 4 more months in a situation I hate isn't worth the severance to me.
Never count your chickens until they hatch. It's the same with severance. You could lose your job. You could be fired for good reason. You could be fired for a bad reason, and have to pay to fight it (and pay to stick around). Severance is not a definate thing. You can't count it until you've earned it, and are actually paid it -- or have legal reason to fight for it after being shafted over it.
People... be fluid. Be loose. Have another plan besides being chained to a poor gov't program that is getting worse and will probably suck much worse next year.
You're not Korean... you don't have to bend over for your boss. You don't have to live here. |
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trigger123
Joined: 08 Sep 2004
Location: TALKING TO STRANGERS, IN A BETTER PLACE
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| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:05 am Post subject: |
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| Grotto wrote: |
| I like using the couch as a clothes hamper and I like walking around in my underwear. |
hubbahubbahubba!
form an orderly queue there ladies, no pushing now..... |
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